A Chicago Based organization and online art gallery uniting artists, musicians and supporters by giving back to the community and our world through the ARTs and social activism.

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Where your heART on your sleeve

Well it is over 24 hours into the Running on heART project and we are back in our room at the Q Hotel and Spa in Kansas City, Mo. WHERE TO START!!! Trying to plan 13 events across the country in less than a week is not only crazy...but it definitely is a simultaneous energizing and taxing experience. The week prior to the Project going live there were numerous anticipated ups and downs...and on many levels those elements continue to keep us on our free spirited toes. It has been really surprising to see where the support is coming from for the project and how unlikely some of our sources have been.

This project continues to be a learning experience for all of us involved and has consistently pushed us far our of our comfort zones. Visiting unfamiliar places and talking to strangers and trying to convince them to support not only the arts, but the populations they are benefiting. We have had to get really good at stomaching rejection one minute and in the next moment be present enough to enjoy an overwhelming amount of encouragement. It is interesting how the same things that nurture us can also deplete us at times.

I look at the three of us tonight...on 4 hours of sleep, being heavily rained on most of the day, driving 9 hours in a car with no AC, getting lost, getting minimal donations in some cities, and now watching the TV weather reporter who is updating us on the tornado warning here in Kansas City. I know this whole scenario seems bizarre to most people...and in many ways it is. Having said that, there is a bigger picture here. It becomes more about evaluating what is important to us and why. It becomes more about how do we spend our time and what do we invest ourselves in. For many people like ourselves, I think projects like Running on heART represent simple yet extraordinary beliefs. The belief that sometimes it is necessary to go to greater lengths or be willing to take risks to protect what is important not only to ourselves, but to us all.